Thursday, 20 September 2018

What Flowers Well in Autumn and Winter?

If you love your garden, you may be about to face up to the fact that it is going to become a little dull as the Winter creeps in. However, this needn’t be the case at all, in fact there are just as many plants that flourish in the cold months as there are plants that thrive in the warmer half of the year. Sloane and Sons Garden Benches want you to be able to enjoy your outdoor spaces all year round. So, here is a quick guide on what to plant to give your garden life and colour once the chilly weather sets in!

1. Bulbs

Bulbs are generally cheap to buy, simple to plant and easy to maintain. A great way to inject life into the garden!

Begonias. One of the most notably wonderful things about these is their long flowering period. They flower from the end of Spring all the way up to the cusp of Winter (around November). Their large blooms are fragrant and perfect for hanging baskets and window boxes.

Crocuses. These are among the most common and most popular autumn bulbs around. Their flowers blooms long before their foliage, so you will be treated to a sea of purple and blue quite early on in the season. The only thing to be wary of it that they don’t do too well in very wet weather, so ensure that they are planted below trees, shrubs or other appropriate shelter.

Dahilas. These flowers are at their best in the early Autumn and are notable for their enormous blooms; some varieties can reach up to 30cm across! These also bridge the gap between Summer and Autumn, a time where most plants are either turning in for the Autumn or preparing to bloom.

Winter Aconites. These are notable for their similarity to buttercups; a taste of Spring in a Winter garden. They like moist soil and shade, so perfect for planting under trees and bushes.

Snowdrops. These very appropriately named flowers are appealing due to their prolific nature and vast variety. They are also so virile that you need only spread their bulbs over your desired growth area, and they will simply grow where they land.

2. Perennials

Perennials are fantastic mainstays of the garden. With this in mind, choose carefully, because once they are thriving they are there to stay! If you already have some perennials in place, then you might be interested to know that the Autumn is the best time to cut back any installations that might be creeping out a little far!

Oriental Lilies. This is a very fragrant and very large variety of lily; growing to around 2 metres in height. Their star shaped blooms come in a variety of colours; pink, red, cream, white, yellow, and orange. If you are looking for a bloom with striking colour and an undeniable presence, this might be the perennial for you!

Nippon Daisy. This large variety of Daisy blooms very late in the season and require very little upkeep. They are very hardy, and like all good perennials will bloom reliably every single year. Not only will they retain their colour and vigour right up until a hard freeze, but their potency can invite butterflies and other insect life into your garden as late as November.

3. Vegetables

When it comes to growing vegetables, Autumn and Winter can be just as bountiful as the Spring and Summer. Here are some hardy crops to plant for your winter harvest.

Broad Beans. These grow very fast and can be harvested in the late Winter (around February) if planted early enough. These vegetables grow abundantly and are extremely nutritious and versatile.

Onions, Shallots and Garlic. These are great to grow as it really is a ‘plant it and leave it alone’ kind of situation. Once planted, you don’t need to tend to them much until the Summer comes around. However, do bear in mind that they will still be in the ground when you begin planting Spring crops, so you will need to think carefully about where to put them.

Peas. You might think peas to be quite a delicate thing, but many varieties are very hardy indeed and are prefect for growing throughout the Winter. You will be able to get a steady harvest of these throughout the Spring and Summer if you stagger their planting sufficiently.

Perpetual Spinach. This stuff just keeps coming back! Once you cut a harvest of leaves from them, you will have your stock replenished within the month. This is the perfect Winter crop as it will keep you in spinach all season long.